


The Elder Wand's Glow

by alyssakay347



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Deathly Hallows, F/M, HP: Years 1-5, Harry Potter-verse with SNK elements (not SNK-verse), M/M, Plot, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-05
Updated: 2015-08-15
Packaged: 2018-04-13 01:17:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4502217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alyssakay347/pseuds/alyssakay347
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Albus Dumbledore starts over and chooses never to lay his eyes on Tom Riddle this time around, but there are some unforeseen ripple effects in his new timeline. New students, new challenges, and new threats find their way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Once again, Albus has to trust headstrong children to save all of Muggle and magical kind.</p><p>And Erwin and Levi are cute wizards.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've always wanted to write a full-length Harry Potter crossover starring one of my favorite ships (eruri omg). So here I go.

_1975_

Without his goggles, Erwin couldn’t see anything except for the black cloak whipping in front of him. It was pouring so hard, he wouldn’t be surprised if someone had enchanted the Black Lake to fall from the sky.

No goggles, a slippery broom, and flying at eighty miles an hour over uninhabited land. Not dangerous at all.

“Le…” Erwin was too exhausted to yell anymore. All he could do was focus on following the cloak even though the chase was most likely a lost cause. Hanji’s broom would go no faster—if only he had his own, perhaps him could catch up.

Of course, if Levi had _his_ own broom, no one in the wizarding world could catch him. But somehow, he was managing Erwin’s speed on a standard issue, which shouldn’t have been possible.

 _Damn you,_ Erwin thought, _stop._ But the rain just came down harder, and visibility got worse. Erwin’s readjusted his hands when they began to slip off the handle. He was certain if Hanji’s broomstick didn’t have footholds, he would have been long gone—a splat somewhere on the mountainside. As he pressed his chest as close to the broom as possible, Erwin tried to ignore just how high up they were flying.

The cloak grew smaller, and Erwin felt a sting of hopelessness. All he could think was: _stop, stop, please stop._

And as if his desperation willed it true, Levi came to abrupt halt midair. Erwin noticed too late and had to circle back around as he slowed. He faced Levi from a few yards away, breathing heavily. Levi’s expression was impossible to make out in the rain.

“Levi, just let me go with you,” Erwin tried to say over the rain. When Levi said nothing, he added, “I had no idea what Dumbledore was going to do with what I told him! I didn’t know that he was—”

“ _You should have known!_ ” Levi cried out. “That delusional oaf was obviously using you to get to me. He made you such a loyal _pet_ I bet you’d tell him all my secrets if he asked.”

It dawned on Erwin that the wetness in his eyes was too warm to be rain. “That’s not true. What I told him…I didn’t think it would make any difference. I’m sorry, Levi. I didn’t know he was going to do anything! I didn’t know he was going to take the cloak. I had no idea.”

“It doesn’t matter if you knew or not,” Levi said. “What matters is—” Levi went silent.

Erwin stiffened on his broom. “What?”

For a time, there was only the sound of the rain.

“Look.”

There was something in Levi’s voice that made Erwin’s gut twist. He flew closer, focusing on balance as he dared a look down. “What?” he asked again. But even as he said it, he saw something in the distance, lumbering through one of the valleys. Something far too big to be human. Something moving far to quickly to be a giant. He turned to see Levi bowed over his broom, one hand on his face. Then he turned back and watched the monster snap trees like twigs. Levi began cursing again and again under his breath. “Levi? What’s wrong?”

“Shut up,” he snapped. There was a waver in his voice.

“Do you know what that is, Levi?” Erwin thought he saw the monster smile, and a shiver racked his whole body.

“We need to find him,” Levi said.

“You mean Dumbledore? What are you talking about?”

“I know why he was using you.”

The monster was joined by another slightly smaller one, emerged from a tall patch of trees. “We should go,” Erwin muttered to himself. Then louder, “Why? What _is_ that? Some potion gone wrong? A modified _engorgio_ charm? That thing’s bigger than any giant I’ve heard about.”

“No. It’s something wizards have never faced before.”

Erwin squinted at Levi’s hands and saw they were shaking, too.

“They’re called Titans.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While this fic is still in its drafting infancy, it is 100% plotted and planned from beginning to end. I'm in college though, so updates will unfortunately be slow.


	2. Eight Words and a Vow

_1971_

The Hogwarts Express squealed to a stop at the platform. Pricilla Nelliwether’s hands trembled with more than old age. Her grandson stood from the bench and began to lug his trunk over to one of the train’s handlers. She tried to follow as quick as she could, but she had become too slow for the boy years ago.

“Darling, wait. Let me have one last hug before you go.” She smiled as he turned. Her perky, spelled-blonde hair was utterly unlike her grandson’s, which was limp and black. Bangs obscured his small face, but Pricilla could still see his somber expression.

She didn’t wait for Levi to come to her; she bent down and took the boy in her arms. Levi did not return the affection. When she pulled away, there was childish fear in his grey eyes. Pricilla’s hunched shoulders fell. “Dear. You’ll have a wonderful time. Just remember what your father said: keep to yourself, and keep to your kind.” The words felt familiar, sounded familiar, tasted familiar, yet—Pricilla wished she had something more uplifting to say.

She couldn’t exactly repeat her daughter’s words: _Promise to keep our family as private as it always has been._

Levi didn’t look interested, in any case, and she waved him off as he took the train to a new life away from her constant vigilance. Pricilla’s daughter, Carlotta, would likely try to convince her son one more time to stay with his grandmother over the breaks, but Levi wouldn’t have listened to her. Levi had eyes only for his father’s only living relative: his grandfather, Mykew Hallow. Pricilla didn’t mind that Levi would visit him instead; the quiet boy needed someone who could relate to him more.

Pricilla was wholly loyal to her daughter, and that had caused strife for herself and her grandson in the past. Most of Carlotta’s decisions and rules derived directly from her husband, but Pricilla couldn’t bring herself to disobey either of them. At least she stood up for poor Levi when even his education at Hogwarts came into question. Even though she couldn’t sleep for a week when she got the silent treatment from her son-in-law, it was the least she could do.

But that was in the past, and Levi’s better future was just beginning. Pricilla adored her grandson, but she was ready to let go. As the train chugged away, lost in its own steam and whistles, she wondered if there was anyone in Levi Hallow’s life still holding on to him.

 

• * º * •

 

 _The Standard Book of Spells Grade 5_ contained far more interesting spells than its predecessor. Erwin Smith read avidly, thrilled that he would soon be able to try them out at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He had never tried as much as a simple mending charm before, let alone a banishing one, but they were all the same in Erwin’s mind: _spells._ Spells that had intrigued him ever since his father turned a smelly, mud-caked fire crab into gleaming, sparkling one with a quick: _tenera scourgify._ The jewels on its shell had been unexpected and mesmerizing. Unfortunately, no amount of pleading could convince his father to let him keep it. _“It’s Ministry property, Erwin.”_ And his pleading failed again when he wanted to _at least_ learn the spell. _“It’s against the law, Erwin. You’re too young.”_

He was reading about body-binding charms when he realized the train wasn’t moving. Looking out the window, he saw rolling hills and a pointy building in the distance. Erwin closed his book and dashed off the train. He didn’t know where he was going until he came across a man over twice his height.

“Yer just in time. Got one boat left.”

Erwin stared up at the huge bearded man. “Boat?”

It was a windy day. His blonde hair and dark robes were flying all over the place, and the canoe wouldn’t stop rocking. Two tall girls chatted away about owls in the front row, while a short boy sat silently next to Erwin in the rear. At first, Erwin was too distracted with the scenery to strike up a conversation, but then he saw the boy’s gaze on the school: awed and longing and a little lost.

Erwin introduced himself. “My parents say Hogwarts one of the best wizarding schools in the world,” he said when the boy did not introduce himself back.

The wind picked up significantly. “Is there a subject you like in particular?” Erwin asked. “I’ve always liked charms.”

The boy show any sign of hearing him. Erwin looked away and decided to take the hint. Even though he’d known magic his whole life, Erwin still marveled at how the boats moved on their own. His mother was Muggle born, so he knew what non-magical life was like, too.

A gust of wind made the boat rock and one of the girls behind him yelped, “My ribbon!”

Erwin squinted and saw something purple dart away in the air. With hardly a thought, he took out his new wand and said: _“Accio ribbon!”_

The ribbon whipped toward Erwin. He caught it against his chest and handed it to its owner.

“Oh, thank you! It was my mom’s. It’s really important to me, thank you so much!” She smiled and showed it to her friend. Erwin turned back around and caught his neighbor looking at him with wide eyes.

“You can do a summoning charm?” the boy asked.

“Well,” Erwin scratched the back of his neck, “I wasn’t sure if I could. I’ve never tried.”

The boy only looked more surprised. “But it’s a fourth year spell.”

Erwin shrugged. “I’ve been reading about spells for years. I just never cast one.”

“You never cast one?”

“My parents wouldn’t let me. Against the rules and all that.”

“My…” The boy hesitated. “My parents made me cast spells everyday to practice.”

Erwin could see the genuine confusion in the boy’s expression. “Oh. Well, some parents get special permission. And some just don’t follow the rules. How long have you been using spells?”

“Since I was three.”

For the sake of his own dignity, Erwin didn’t fall back into he lake. “Have you used the same wand all this time?”

The boy nodded. When Erwin asked to see it, he reached inside his robes and took out his black wand. It was not as long as Erwin's, but it was slimmer and more embellished if Erwin looked closely. Erwin reached out instinctively and to his surprise, Levi handed the wand to him. He held it up to the boat’s lantern. The designs were beautiful, immaculate etchings of patterns Erwin could not decipher. The handle was hardly thicker than the shaft, and the shaft was hardly thicker than a finger, but the wand itself was heavier than it looked. Erwin didn’t need to know much about wandmaking to know it was top quality.

“When I went to Ollivander’s,” Erwin said, “I went through twelve different wands before one chose me. And none of them were as amazing as this one.” He reluctantly handed it back to the boy, whose expression could not be made out in the lantern’s shadow.

“Lemme see yours.”

Erwin obliged. His wand was plain, but as Ollivander put it, “entirely unusual,” as well. It was a dull reddish-brown, and its handle was reinforced with iron, making the wand heavier than all the others Erwin had tested in Ollivander’s shop. His mother worried it was too long for a boy of his average size, but his father was oddly proud of the characteristic.

“Redwood?”

Erwin blinked and nodded. “How did you know?”

“Mine is redwood as well, just died black. My grandfather used to be a wandmaker; he taught me these things. Your wand’s core is a phoenix feather?”

“Yes,” Erwin said, smiling. “I hear it’s a rare core to have.”

The boy shrugged one shoulder. “The wood is rarer these days.”

“What’s the core of your wand?” Erwin asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Really? I thought—”

“Did you say your wand choose you?” the boy interrupted.

Erwin looked down at his wand, which the boy was staring at closely and turning round and round in his hands. “Yes. Of course. All wands choose the wizard.”

“No. My wand was custom made.” The wand stilled in the boy’s hands. “That means it didn’t really choose me, I guess.”

“Well,” Erwin said. “I didn’t need to, if it was made for you.”

An unhappy expression came over the boy’s face. “Still.” He returned the wand.

Erwin tucked it back in his robes. “Your wand is kind-of like a child, then. It didn’t choose its mother, but it would never consider choosing a different one, would it?”

The boy made a contemptuous sound. “That’s stupid. Some kids would do anything to change their mom. Or dad.”

“That’s not the point. Your wand didn’t choose you; you didn’t choose your wand. You were just…made for each other.” Erwin grinned when he got a smirk out of the boy.

“That’s even stupider.”

Erwin laughed, and the boy looked hilariously caught off-guard. “What’s your name?” Erwin asked.

“Levi.”

 

• * º * •

 

 _“Gryffindor!”_ yelled the Sorting Hat.

Albus watched Sirius Black jump up from the stool and eagerly take his place at the Gryffindor table. It seemed they were both feeling giddy.

_“Hufflepuff!”_

_“Ravenclaw!”_

As each student was sorted, Albus imagined the life that now spanned far ahead of them all. None cut short by war and heartbreak. Over a decade had passed since the first pang of joy, the realization that some of these children had grown up only to die, but now would not. Over a decade of the same rush of relief that these innocent souls would _live_ , and still the feeling had not yet subsided. In fact, this year the rush was more overwhelming than ever, seeing so many children Albus had known well, who had meant so much to so many people. Now they were all lined up again, humming with the same anticipation and joy. Only this time, it would last much longer.

Lily Evans stepped up to the stool and Albus’s heart pounded with ineffable emotion. Her smile was as pretty as ever, her eyes still the sharp green Albus remembered seeing nearly everyday in her son. Once she was sorted into Gryffindor, she took a seat next to Sirius, enjoying the claps and cheers.

Albus could almost bathe in his serenity—his relief, hope, and pride. Until he was jerked into awareness at a name he did not recognize.

“Levi Hallow,” Minerva called.

The Headmaster leaned forward a little and narrowed his eyes. _Hallow._ Minerva’s voice echoed in his head. _Hallow. Surely that’s a coincidence._ There had only been two “new” students in Albus’s second experience at Hogwarts: Hanji Zoe and Nile Dok, both of them Ravenclaws and good students. At first he had been uneasy, but when nothing of concern happened as a result of their attendance, Albus wrote their novelty off as inevitable ripples in a changed timeline. _Ripples are bound to happen_ , his mantra went: sometimes they were small; sometimes they were surprising. The trick was knowing what was significant, if anything.

The Sorting Hat took longer than usual to sort Levi Hallow into a House. Albus felt guilty at his relief when the hat shouted Gryffindor.

The small boy showed no reaction as he walked over to his House’s table. He sat on the very end and watched the Sorting without enthusiasm. Albus took a breath and sat back against his chair. _A fluke_ , he told himself.

_Xenophilius Lovegood…Ravenclaw! Remus Lupin…Peter Pettigrew…James Potter…Gryffindor!_

But it was hard to find solace in his own words as he lay his eyes on two more “new” faces. The first was Nanaba Rose, a new Hufflepuff, and clearly a budding favorite among her new Housemates. She was blonde and quite androgynous. She looked far more satisfied with her Sorting than the other new face.

_“Slytherin!”_

If Albus has been pleasantly surprised at Levi Hallow’s Sorting, then he felt slightly offended on behalf of Erwin Smith. He was a confident-looking boy, with hair as blonde as Nanaba’s and eyes twice as blue—eyes that betrayed a goodness Albus could see from where he was sitting at the faculty table. _A false goodness, perhaps?_ Albus wasn’t sure; the disappointment in Erwin’s expression as he walked passed Gryffindor’s table was too childish to be insincere.

Albus only ceased his reflection on the new class to clap heartily for Severus Snape, Slytherin—though not enough raise eyebrows. He wondered what Severus would be like this time around, without Death Eaters around to sway him so young. The thoughts filled him with warm fondness.

Whatever happened this time around, it would be better.

 _Hallow_.

The name would not leave him alone.

 

• * º * •

 

_Monday_

Levi couldn’t decide if he was more excited to leave History of Magic or go to Defense Against the Dark Arts.

He had to admit, the Hufflepuffs were not as inferior as his father made them out to be, considering over half of them managed to pay attention to Professor Binns, unlike Gryffindor. But they didn’t make the class anymore enjoyable than listening to Pricilla talk about the new magical hair products she had acquired.

There wasn’t anything particularly enjoyable about the first year curriculum of Defense that Levi was anticipating, but it was his first class with Slytherin. Levi hadn’t spoken with Erwin Smith since they arrived at the castle, and he wanted to talk to someone interesting again. Gryffindors only wanted to talk about Quiddich.

But someone was already sitting next to Erwin when Levi got to class, so he settled with a red-headed girl nearby. Fortunately, she wasn’t annoying and stayed calm even when a few Gryffindor boys kept bothering her. She was pleasantly quiet, as well, focusing on Professor Zovorin’s lecture—or maybe she was just as hypnotized by the elegant white scars streaking across the man’s dark brown skin as all the other girls seemed to be.

The Professor was listing out some topics they would be learning first term, but they were all things Levi had read about before with his grandfather. He focused on the boy next to Erwin instead. Grotesquely long black hair, skin somehow even paler than his own, and a sour expression he kept throwing at Levi. _If you want to sit next to her so much, you should have asked,_ Levi thought.

He was surprised when the Professor got into spellwork during the first class. They practiced a wand-lighting charm, and everyone was doing a terrible job sans two pairs.

“Evans, good. Not so snappish, but you’re getting a glow,” said Professor Zovorin as he strode past Lily and Levi. He stopped when he saw Levi’s perfectly controlled light at the tip of his wand. “Ah, Mr. Hallow! Excellent. I didn’t think anyone would get it so easily.” He smiled and moved on. Lily congratulated him.

Levi couldn’t help but grin when he saw Erwin get it right a few minutes later. The Professor praised him as well, but the boy sitting next to him wasn’t impressed. None of the other Slytherins thought congratulations were in order for their Housemates, it seemed. But Erwin looked unperturbed. He just stared into the glow on his wand like he saw something more there.

 

_Tuesday_

Every time Erwin Smith said something pleasant to him, Xenophilius Lovegood gaped like that halfwit Crabbe had at the Acromantula photos in his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook. Near the end of their third Charms class, after Erwin had helped him yet again on a softening spell, Xeno couldn’t take it any longer.

“Are you playing some kind of joke?” he asked Erwin, trying to appear uncaring. “Or do you just feel bad for me?”

Erwin turned his attention from his perfectly softened textbook. “What?”

Xeno scratched his untamable platinum hair. “Never mind.”

“I know the other Slytherins aren’t very kind to you,” Erwin said. “It’s a shame, since you’re really smart.”

 _He doesn’t censor himself, does he?_ “Not in charms,” Xeno muttered.

“I hope you’re not just comparing yourself to me. I’m not gifted or anything, I just really like this class.”

 _How does he do it? Show off without showing off?_ Xeno decided to just ask what he had been wondering all class. “Do you think you could…uh…tutor me? My parents are really good at charms and I don’t want them to…you know…”

“Sure.” Erwin smiled. “That’ll work great since no one really likes me either. You don’t mind a ‘mindless know-it-all’ tutor, do you?”

 _Is he being sarcastic or serious?_ “That doesn’t make sense.” Xeno said.

“Tell that to Julius Parkinson—”

“Erwin Smith,” called Professor Flitwick. “No talking, please. Have you had success with the spell?” He tapped the darkened tip of his wand on Erwin’s textbook. “Positively spongy. Excellent work.” The Professor nodded, and Erwin thanked him.

Xeno and the other students watched the exchange with a mix of envy and irritation.

 

_Wednesday_

Erwin looked stupidly excited to sit next to Levi during Potions, but Levi kept a straight face. “Why do you look so happy?” he asked. “It’s not like you have any competition to sit here.”

Erwin shrugged. “There _is_ a competition not to sit next to _me_ , though, so I hope you don’t mind losing.” He took out his textbook and flipped to the page number written on the chalkboard. “Undetectable Poisons? It’s that a little—”

“That’s the third year textbook, stupid,” Levi said. He tried not to smile.

“Oh,” Erwin hauled his satchel onto his desk and dug around. “I think I left the right book in my…” He sighed and turned to Levi. “Could I share yours?”

“Whatever.” Levi looked at the clock. There was still five minutes until class began, and the Professor was nowhere in sight. “Why won’t anyone sit next to you? Do Slytherins hate being around know-it-alls?”

Erwin shook his head. “Cheerful people, actually. At least that’s what Severus told me yesterday in Charms. I can’t help it; I like Charms.”

“So your own House doesn’t like you?”

“And I’m too superficial for a Ravenclaw, too obedient for a Gryffindor.” Erwin recited.

“I don’t see how you’re superficial,” Levi said. “Any first year Ravenclaw who uses the word superficial is probably superficial.”

“They think I act smart because I want to be better than them.” Erwin tipped his head in thought. “I suppose that’s halfway true. I just want to be the best I can be.” He grinned and twirled a quill in his hand.

Levi rolled his eyes. “Is that what your _mom_ told you?”

“My dad actually,” Erwin said without hesitation. “Since my mom works with dragons, she actually tells me not to try too hard because dragons don’t discriminate when they’re hungry.”

“Dragons?” Levi lifted his eyebrows.

“She breeds them overseas. My dad likes dragons, too. He works with magical creatures at the Ministry.”

 _Dragon breeding certainly explains his expensive robes and supplies._ Yet, it hadn’t escaped Levi’s notice that Erwin didn’t act like most spoiled brats he knew. “That’s a hard job. Is it a family business?”

Erwin looked proud. “No, my mom started her own business. She’s Muggle-born actually.”

At that moment, the Professor came out of his office and greeted the class. “Hello children. I am Professor Slughorn, a dedicated Potions Master here at Hogwarts, and I am very pleased to meet all of you. Today we’ll learn about cauldrons and vials, and for the rest of term we’ll learn just what exactly to put in them!”

Erwin began scribbling right away, but Levi didn’t move. He felt like he’d been petrified, like his father had once done to him a fit of rage.

Muggle-born: not his kind. _And I’m not keeping to myself, either._ Halfway through the first week of school, and Levi was already failing his father’s instructions.

 

_Thursday_

Severus Snape hated flying, and he also hated that no one else seemed to hate it. At least Remus Lupin was as bad as he was, barely staying in the air for longer than three seconds before losing his balance—Peter Pettigrew was hardly better. Sirius and James were unfortunately competent, and kept horsing around when the instructor wasn’t looking. Lily was good, too, but she kept laughing at James, which made Severus itch to throttle the scum. He was her friend first.

He vowed to impress her next Defense class; James would be a worthy candidate to humiliate and expose as the fool he was.

Severus looked around at his Housemates and the Gryffindors. Severus hated Quiddich, but he hated the idea of Slytherin _losing_ at Quiddich even more. So he could tell that first year Slytherins and Gryffindors seemed to be evenly matched, were the instructor to start a game between them right there and then.

As he swept his eyes over the two lines, Severus did a double take. Erwin Smith was hovering with perfect ease on his broom, and the Hallow kid across from him was doing the same. While Hallow looked bored to tears, Erwin was talking and gesturing at him with only one hand on his broom, as if he’d practiced balancing on it for a thousand hours before.

With a smirk, Severus moved his gaze back to James. Perhaps the scum would have more competition than he thought. All Severus could hope was that no one gave him advance warning; it would be all the sweeter to see the shock on his face when someone beat him at his favorite game.

 

_Friday_

Any intrigue that Levi might have felt about a midnight class had long flown away on a Nimbus by the time midnight actually rolled around. Levi trudged up the endless spiral staircase to the Astronomy Tower. He was certain he was going to fall asleep during class; the only question was if he could sit somewhere far enough away from Erwin that he could _stay_ asleep.

So far, Erwin seemed to be the clingy type, but Levi hadn’t guessed he would be so _clever_ about it. As if he had some kind of special sense, Erwin could tell when Levi had tolerated enough or when Levi was in a particularly tolerating mood. Erwin never gave him so much attention that Levi would feel justified in telling him to piss off, but Erwin also wasn’t easily scared off as to give up on friendship altogether.

 _Almost cunning,_ Levi thought. Regardless, Erwin had shown a kind of dedication to being friends, and Levi was going to have to step up his game if he was going keep him at a distance with everyone else. _Keep to your kind, Levi. Keep to yourself._

“Falling asleep already?”

Levi looked up and grinned—and with a pang of fear, schooled his face again. “I bet I stay awake longer than you, Kidwin.”

“Don’t call me that.” But Erwin was smiling as they walked up the remaining stairs together.

“Then stop acting like a kid,” Levi said.

“I _am_ a kid. What’s wrong with that?”

Levi didn’t have an answer, but he was sure his father would.

In Defense the day before, Snape had snagged the seat next to Lily and Levi was free to sit next to Erwin. It didn’t matter, though, since they had to write at double-speed to keep up with the Professor’s lecture on Fire Crabs. Levi didn’t have a clue why, but Erwin seemed particularly interested in the subject.

Between Defense notes, Erwin passed him a note near the end of class asking if Levi was going to try out for the Quiddich team next year. Once Levi got over how random the question was, he wrote: _How can you know if I’m any good?_

Erwin replied once they were released, “I know you’re more talented than you seem, Hallow.” Since he looked so smug, Levi made sure to say as rudely as possible that he was absolutely not going to tryout ever.

 _Besides,_ Levi thought, _my father probably wouldn’t let me join anyway._

Astronomy wasn’t so bad since they were free to stargaze for the second half of class. When Erwin started pointing out stars and reciting all kinds of background information about each one, other Gryffindors scooted over to listen in. Levi wondered why he was surprised anymore. _How is he not a Ravenclaw? Or even a Hufflepuff?_

Then Erwin took a girl’s hand and moved it around like he was helping her connect dots, all the while explaining some constellation Levi had forgotten the moment Erwin introduced it. Levi thought about their conversation on the first day of Potions.

When they walked back down the stairs after class, Levi asked, “Why not Hufflepuff?”

Erwin frowned. “The Slytherins said they didn’t know why, but they had a feeling I didn’t belong there either.”

“A _feeling?_ ” Levi wanted to gag at the stupidity of people his age. Then he realized something. “Where do you hear all this? Do you like to eavesdrop or what?”

Erwin smirked—an expression Levi wasn’t used to. “No, but my mother taught me something else. Some dragons have tells that, if you recognize them in time, can save your life. Observation is one of the most important skills for a wizard to have.”

Levi sniffed. “Whatever. Haven’t you learned that you’ll never hear anything good about yourself when you eavesdrop?”

“I overheard you talking to Lily in Herbology. She mentioned me as your friend and you didn’t deny it.”

Levi spun around. “You’re listening in on my conversations? ” He could feel his face grow red. “No wonder no one likes you; you’re a creep! That’s what you are!” _And a half-blood!_

They were stopped in an empty hall halfway between their Houses’ common rooms. Levi could hear his own louder breathing, but to his surprise, Erwin was completely devoid of anger or any other reaction.

“There we have it, then,” Erwin deadpanned. “Too creepy for Hufflepuff. Now we have all four reasons I don’t belong here.”

Levi glared at him. “Want me to throw a pity party for you?” But he knew that wasn’t right. “Why do you care?”

“I don’t. That’s what I’m trying to show you.”

“What?”

“I don’t know why you’re trying so hard not to belong anywhere, but you are.” Erwin said. “You don’t participate in anything; you don’t raise your hand; you don’t try to make friends at all. I’m not asking you to explain, but I want you to know…you can be friends with mebecause I don’t mind belonging nowhere with you.”

Levi stood in silence for a long moment. _What am I supposed to do, Father?_

“As a dragon breeder,” Levi muttered, “your mother’s probably told you: If you play with fire, you get burned.”

 

• * º * •

 

In the school records, all Levi Hallow had listed as family was his grandmother, Pricilla Nelliwether. Albus guessed Nelliwether must be the mother’s maiden name. The lack of any listed mother at all was unusual, but not unheard of. Albus was more interested in the lack of information for the father—or wherever the name _Hallow_ came from.

His curiosity got the better of him, and he invited Levi to his office one Tuesday afternoon during a Gryffindor free period.

The boy entered his office without a greeting, sat down, and waited. Albus folded his hands. “Are you excited for the Halloween feast coming up? I’m sure the older students have mentioned that it a delicious event to say the least.”

Levi shrugged and looked over at the window.

“Are you liking your classes?” Albus tried again. “Which is your favorite so far?”

“I don’t know,” the boy said. “Charms, I guess.”

“Ah yes, Professor Flitwick is indeed a favorite.”

Albus got no response. In the back of his mind, he waited for a quill to drop. “Well,” he sighed. “I occasionally meet with students who show particular promise. I like to get to know them.”

Levi looked a little doubtful and a lot disinterested. Albus pursed his lips. He wasn’t exactly sure how to approach this anymore—most students jumped at the chance to get to get personal with the _Hogwarts Headmaster_ of all people.

“I have a question for you,” Albus said. “Your grandmother is your only listed guardian. Where are you parents?” He belatedly hoped they weren’t deceased.

“They work out of the country. I don’t see them much.”

Albus sighed and decided not to press. Again, unusual, but not unheard of. “I’m sorry for that. Are you well, Levi? Perhaps you should go and rest.” It was the best excuse he could come up with on the spot. Levi exited his office without hesitation.

 _Hallow_. Perhaps it was nothing, and Albus was only paranoid.

But even from a few minutes with him, Albus could sense Levi Hallow didn’t trust anyone and had no plans to. It wasn’t a sense Albus wished to feel from anyone, let alone a child. If there was something Albus could do…something there for Albus to discover…

He remembered his vow. _I’m looking for ways to break it, and I must not. I will not._

 

• * º * •

 

It was something of a tragedy, Hanji’s new friendship with Xenophilius Lovegood. Nile already had to deal with one weirdo, but two was out of hand. He tried his best to ignore the first year, but Hanji seemed to feel it was her duty as a second year to help him out. At least he was excited that the Ravenclaw Quiddich team was winning; Nile had to give him credit for that, since there were far too many Ravenclaws that failed to show the proper spirit for such a brilliant game.

Nile Dok had been friends with Hanji Zoe since the first day of first year. She had been the only person Nile came across that was willing to have an intelligent conversation without drowning him in pretentiousness. Plus, he appreciated her enthusiasm for Quiddich as well. She was so excited now that she looked in physical pain, jumping up and down in the stands, cheering at everything Ravenclaw did to best Hufflepuff.

As the trio made their way back to Ravenclaw Tower after the match, Xeno asked some questions about the game that proved he didn’t have a clue how Quiddich worked. Nile tuned them both out until he realized he was walking alone. He spun around and saw Hanji flipping through a textbook, Xeno looking over her shoulder.

“What are you doing?” Nile moaned. He had Astronomy that night and needed a nap.

“Look at these notes, Nile! It’s Xeno’s Charms textbook, and he got a friend to tutor him. There are comments on the sides of the pages…ooh, that _would_ be helpful.” She mumbled some things she was reading, and Nile walked over.

“You’re saying the tutor’s not Flitwick?” Nile made a face. “No, this handwriting’s too neat.” He would know, given all the marks on his Charms homework in the past.

“He’s actually a first year,” Xeno said.

 _“First year?”_ Hanji whistled. “Wow, I really need to meet whoever wrote this…”

“Which first year?” Nile asked. “Can’t think of any first year Ravenclaw willing to tutor for free.”

“He’s…” Xeno bowed his head. “A Slytherin actually. He said he would help tutor me since the others Ravenclaws wouldn’t.”

Nile laughed. “I swear I would help, Lovegood, but I’m terrible at Charms, and Hanji’s _worse_.”

Hanji scrunched her face and adjusted her glasses. “Some Ravenclaws we are. But I’m top of my class in Astronomy, I’ll have you know.”

“Because you can stay awake the whole time,” Nile said. “Speaking of—I _won’t_ if I don’t get some sleep before class. Can we go already?”

It was only when they headed up to their dormitories that it dawned on Nile. He spun around to face Xeno, who looked at him with his perpetual wide-eyed stare.

“What _Slytherin_ wouldhelp _you_ with Charms?”

“Erwin Smith.”

Nile’s mouth fell open. “ _Erwin_ _Smith?_ ” Xeno nodded. “His parents don’t happen to work at the Ministry, do they?” Because Nile's parents did, and they knew who was who in the Ministry.

Xeno nodded again. “I think he mentioned that.”

“Bloody hell,” Nile groaned. “You seriously didn’t make the connection? Erwin Smith, son of Samantha and Roderick Smith, two of the _richest wizards in Europe?_ One of which is a self-made _dragon breeder?_ ”

Xeno leaned back a little.

“And he’s your friend.” Nile raised his eyebrows. “Nice, Lovegood.”

Maybe being friends with this kid wouldn’t be a complete embarrassment.

 

• * º * •

 

Levi loved his grandfather’s house, and he was grateful to spend his holidays there while at Hogwarts. It was sparse and cold, but Mykew Hallow had given it character. The furniture was all one of a kind, and there were a few relics here and there from the old man’s travels.

The two were sitting by the large fireplace, swathed in thick blankets. Mykew had drawn the curtains, revealing the snow still falling heavily outside.

“I got word a few hours ago,” Mykew said. “Your mother and father aren’t going to make it today. But they did send you presents.”

Levi looked at the fire’s orange glow on his grandfather’s face. His skin was tanner than his son and grandson’s, presumably from his adventures in the Southern Hemisphere. His beard was thick and black, and his hair was long, bushy, and greying. His face was full of frown lines and other wrinkles, but Levi knew for a fact his grandfather was much more mellow than anyone else in his family.

Maybe that’s why Levi felt little for anyone but his grandfather. Mykew was kind, unlike his father; he was fun, unlike his mother; he was strong-willed, unlike his grandmother. Perhaps he was not as smart and cultured as some, but Mykew made up for it in plenty of other ways.

There was no Christmas tree, but a wreath hung over the mantle. It had no magical element, only plain, natural radiance. Three presents waited beside Levi’s armchair.

“Don’t you want to open them?” Mykew asked, throwing him a lazy smile.

Levi picked up the first one. The box was covered in magical sparkling parchment, with only slight mistake or two in its wrapping. The tag told Levi the senders were his mother and grandmother. They always gave him a joint present, and Levi wouldn’t have minded if he wasn’t certain it was just Pricilla’s present with his mother’s name added on almost like an afterthought. He opened it slowly and carefully, and reached inside. There were candies of all kinds, pricy and cheap. _Same as last year_ , Levi thought. His grandmother could never remember he didn’t even _like_ candy. Mykew would eat it, though.

The next present was smaller and wrapped in dark green and red—flawless at every corner, no tag to be seen. Inside was a black leather-bound notebook and silver pen. A note was slipped inside its pages:

_Levi,_

_I found this in a small wizarding shop and thought of you. Whatever you write with this pen in this notebook can never be read by anyone else, magical or otherwise. I hope you find it useful._

_Remember my words and have a happy Christmas,_

_Your proud father_

Levi tossed the note away with the discarded wrappings. With the special pen, he wrote on the first page of the notebook: _you stink more than a troll in summer._ He held out the notebook to Mykew.

“Can you read what I wrote?”

Mykew took the notebook and eyed it. “Read what?” He flipped to the next page. “Where?”

Levi grinned. “It works then.”

“Works? Lemme see what your father wrote.” Mykew grunted as he stood, swiped up the note, and grunted again as he sat down. After looking it over, he sighed. “What ‘words’ does he mean, Levi?”

“You know,” Levi mumbled, fiddling with the fancy pen. “Don’t trust anyone. Don’t make friends. That stuff.”

“I doubt he said it quite like _that_.” Mykew adjusted himself in his chair to face Levi better, but Levi would not meet his eyes. He sighed. “I won’t tell you to disobey what your father thinks is best for you, but I hope you know you can trust _me_. And at Hogwarts, I’m sure you can trust Headmaster Dumbledore if you get in any trouble.” He pointed his finger at Levi and lifted and eyebrow. “Don’t tell your father I told you that. He’s never been a fan of Dumbledore’s.”

“Why?”

Mykew hesitated before answering, “Beats me, my boy. Open your last present.”

Levi reached down and grabbed the smallest box, hardly bigger than his hand. It was crudely wrapped in green, with a ridiculous white bow. Levi gave his grandfather a look, which was ignored. Inside the box was a small, carved…stick, with two tiny branches rising from either side.

“It’s redwood, like your wand,” Mykew said. “I’ve enchanted it to be indestructible—took me a while, but it’s much easier to do for something that size.”

Levi turned twirled it in his hand. It was heavier than it looked, and perfectly smooth. “What is it?”

“A keepsake,” Mykew said. “It’s shaped like the rune _Algiz_ , which means protection. It doesn’t do anything, but I’m a sappy old man; I wanted you to have something that reminded you of me.”

“Protection?”

Mykew nodded. Levi didn’t ask him to explain.

 

• * º * •

 

Seeing Lily as a child again was more than surreal. She was even more boisterous and confident than Albus remembered. Just like last time, she became friends with James and his friends. Albus suspected she would remain friends with Severus as well, now that Death Eaters wouldn’t drive them apart.

But the most surreal change became evident was when Albus looked into Lily’s eyes and saw her son. Perhaps that was not so much a change as it was irony.

“Thank you for seeing me, Mrs. Evans,” Albus said. He gestured her to sit in the chair across from him. “I just wanted to ask you some questions. But first, I want to let you in on a little secret.”

Lily nodded and leaned forward.

“Professor Slughorn has mentioned to me in confidence that you are one of his favorite students. One of the most talented, as well.” He smiled. “Keep up the good work, Lily. I’m sure your parents will be just as impressed as the Professor and I are.”

She smiled as cheerily as a first year could and thanked him. She swung her legs absently, and Albus’s attention was drawn to the contrast between her and the first year he meant to talk about.

“Another thing that impresses me, Lily,” he continued, “is how a certain student in Gryffindor respects you more than most. I know that you’re a great friend to so many of your fellow Housemates. Are you friends with Levi Hallow?”

Her legs stopped swinging, and Lily looked away with her brow scrunched tight. “We’re not friends, not really. He’s polite to me, but…” She shrugged.

Albus concealed his disappointment. He hadn’t spent much time observing Levi’s behavior lately, but when he’d seen Levi give Lily the time of day on more than one occasion, he had hoped. “Not friends then? He hasn’t told you much about himself?”

She shook her head. “Nothing at all, Headmaster.”

“Nothing at all,” Albus repeated to himself.

“Yeah, he doesn’t have friends. I suppose the only person he really _talks_ to is one of the Slytherins.”

Albus snapped out of his thoughts. “Slytherin?” He immediately thought of Severus. “Who might that be?”

“Erwin…um, Smith! Yes, he’s very nice for a Sly—um, he’s very nice,” she said blushing.

Albus clasped his hands on his desk in silent victory. “Now, now, my dear Lily, don’t let your friends turn you against our perfectly fine Slytherin house.”

“No, sir. I won’t.”

“Good.” Albus nodded and stood. “You’re dismissed, Lily. Thank you. I hope second term is as good as the first.”

Erwin Smith. One of the other “new” students. _Coincidence?_ Albus decided to observe more carefully this time before he interrogated any more students. He hadn’t told any of the other Professors what he was doing; he was certain Minerva would disapprove. _He_ disapproved of _himself_ , but he was too curious for his own good. He had second term to see how things went with Levi. Perhaps the boy might make a friend after all, and then Albus would have a better chance at learning about him. And his name.

 

• * º * •

 

Remus Lupin expected to be alone during the Easter holiday. His parents decided it would be best if he stay at the school, even if a full moon didn’t fall all that close along the break; they learned that even the off-days could be difficult, with mood swings that went beyond simple human hormones.

He thought the entire two weeks were going to be filled with boredom and repressed loneliness, but he ran into someone on the third day of break that made him think otherwise.

“You’re Remus Lupin,” the boy said.

“Right.”

“I’m Erwin Smith.”

“Right…” Remus said. With that, Erwin sat across from him at the Gryffindor table as if he had been given permission.

“Why are you here?” Remus asked. “Parents on vacation?”

“No, this year they’re working over the holiday for some reason. They didn’t say why.”

When Remus raised an eyebrow, Erwin elaborated, “It doesn’t mater to me. We don’t really celebrate Easter, anyway, and I like it here.” He looked around and smiled, and Remus could tell he was telling the truth.

“Yeah,” Remus said, with a small grin. “Me too. Dumbledore has been…really great.”

“Because he’s helped you out with your lycanthropy?”

“Because— _what?_ ”

Erwin blinked. “You know, being a werewolf? It’s amazing how well-kept your secret is.”

Remus felt his face go white, undoubtedly making his scars stand out even more. He looked around, but it was just the two of them nearby. “Apparently it isn’t,” he muttered.

A moment of silence passed, and Erwin’s face turned pink. “I mean, I’m sorry. I figured it out a while ago, I didn’t mean to…I just thought…”

“Have you told your parents?” Remus asked. “Because parents won’t—”

“No! No, I haven’t told anyone.” Erwin held up his hands. “But even if I did, my parents work with magical creatures, so they would really like you.”

Remus narrowed his eyes. “For being a…you know.”

“Yeah, and they would probably tell you learning to live with the cycle so young will help you live more normally in the future.”

“What?”

Erwin nodded. “Plenty of adult werewolves struggle to live normal lives because they don’t know how to deal with all the changes that come with turning. But you’re going to have years and years to practice before you’re even of age.”

“How do you know?”

“My father has done lots of studies on werewolves, and I’ve read them.”

“Oh…” Remus wasn’t sure whether to be impressed or wary or both. “Well…” He looked away out the windows of the Great Hall. “My friends didn’t react like you did, that’s for sure.”

“Were they scared?”

Remus pursed his lips. “Maybe a little, yes. Although, if Dumbledore hadn’t told them himself, they probably wouldn’t have believed me.”

“Oh.”

“But they still were nice. They wanted to stay my friends,” Remus said quickly. “They actually wanted to help out…once they realized it was all true. But Dumbledore said it was too dangerous.”

Erwin grinned. “That is nice of them.”

“Yeah.” Remus still couldn’t get over how Erwin knew—a stranger essentially. Could anyone find out so easily, or was Erwin just at an advantage with what he apparently knew about werewolves already? _He seems so nonchalant about it._

“Aren’t you scared?” Remus asked.

“No. Are you?”

Remus stared at him in disbelief. “Of course I am. How could I not be?”

Erwin looked down. “Right. Sorry.”

“Wouldn’t _you_ be, if you were what I am?”

After a long moment, Erwin met his eyes again. “I’m sure I would be terrified.”

Remus leaned back a little. “You would. Anyone would. It is terrifying, the change. You don’t have any control at all, over anything about yourself.”

He realized he had never spoken to James or the others about what the actual turning was like. Erwin’s expression was interested, not afraid, and that made Remus feel…less afraid, too.

“You know, I already finished most of my homework for the break,” Remus said. “Do you want to see where Dumbledore lets me stay during the bad nights?”

He’d never considered asking anyone but his Gryffindor friends. He never actually _shown_ anyone but Sirius and James, who agreed to go out of loyalty.

But Erwin smiled with excitement rather than sympathy, and Remus smiled back.


	3. Sand in the Hourglass

Levi rolled over in bed. It was the middle of the afternoon. He was bored, but he wasn’t interested in doing something not boring, either.

Easter for Levi didn’t turn out to be very fun.

Half of the day, Levi sulked around, wondering how to get Erwin off his back for good. The other half of the day, he wondered what Erwin was doing back at Hogwarts for his Easter holiday. Was he making friends or scaring them away? Erwin had a talent for saying the wrong things at the wrong times, but while most people didn’t have very thick skin, Levi did. Levi appreciated actions over words, and Erwin stayed out of his way when Levi was in a bad mood and stuck around when he thought Levi felt lonely—not that Levi ever got lonely.

“Are you getting lonely at school, Levi?”

Mykew leaned against the doorframe of Levi’s bedroom. He looked like he was getting comfortable. That wasn’t a good sign. Levi rolled over again to face away from his grandfather.

“ _No,_ of _course_ not,” Levi replied, adding on a long exasperated sigh for good measure. When Mykew didn’t say anything for a few moments, Levi willed him to go away.

“What’s with the attitude?” Mykew asked.

“Whatattitude?”

Mykew let out his own sigh. “Your father didn’t really tell you not to make friends, did he? I assumed you were exaggerating the last time you were here.”

Levi said nothing.

“Levi? Did he?”

“He said to stick around pure-bloods and don’t get involved in anything. Sorry, I mean ‘stay focused,’” Levi mocked. “I don’t know. I wasn’t paying attention. What does friends have to do with anything, anyway? I don’t care about friends. They’re for insecure little kids.”

_I don’t mind belonging nowhere with you._

“You are a kid.”

Levi rolled his eyes. “Whatever.” _Kidwin._

“Well, here’s me giving you explicit permission to make friends,” Mykew said. “For God’s sake, sometimes your father—anyway. You don’t have to act like someone you’re not, but don’t stonewall someone who talks to you.” When Levi groaned, he added, “Like that. Don’t do that when people try to be nice.”

Levi was silent as he stared at the wall.

“So when you go back, are you going to _try_ to be happy?”

Levi sat up in bed to look at his grandfather. “Huh? I’m happy.”

Mykew raised an eyebrow. “This is what happy’s like? You laying in bed all day?”

“I’m bored.”

“Then do something.”

Levi slumped back down in bed. “I don’t feel like it.”

Mykew sighed again and sat on the edge of Levi’s bed. Levi scooted away, but Mykew was as stubborn as he was. “Tell me. Has obeying your father word for word made Hogwarts enjoyable?”

Levi scoffed. “No. But it’s _school_. What do you expect?”

“It should be enjoyable, Levi. Just a little. I hate seeing you like this. You’ve been moping around for days.”

“No, I haven’t. And I don’t care,” Levi mumbled. He wondered what Erwin would think. _Probably would just read his books._ Levi almost grinned. Erwin wasn’t so bad.

Then Levi frowned. Eventually everyone else would realize that Erwin wasn’t so bad, too. And Erwin didn’t have any rules against making friends. Levi could imagine going back after holiday and Erwin having a bunch of friends to hang out with. Not Levi, who wouldn’t even say they were friends if someone asked.

“Are you happy at school?” Mykew asked softly.

Levi didn’t answer except for the smallest shake of his head. Mykew put a hand on his shoulder. “Do things that makes you happy. One friend can make all the difference. Now, I expect you to bring a friend over next Easter holiday, alright?”

Levi brushed him off, but Mykew was satisfied. The door closed quietly and Levi waited for the holiday to end.

 

• * º * •

 

And James thought _he_ didn’t like studying. Sirius hadn’t written one word on parchment in the last three hours they had been studying in the common room. Exams were less than a week away and even Peter was studying with some measure of focus. But Sirius’s mind was clearly elsewhere.

“I bet he would run crying if he found out what Remus really was,” Sirius said to no one in particular.

James threw his head back against the armchair. “You’re giving me a headache! Who cares if Remus has some new friend? What, would you rather have had him sit in a corner all holiday?”

“No…” Sirius brushed his long, messy hair out of his face. “But a _Slytherin?_ ”

James smirked. “He’s like, the least Slytherin-like Slytherin in the history of Slytherins.”

“He’s still a Slytherin,” Sirius said. “And weird.”

“You’re weird,” James muttered.

“At least I’m friends with more than just Remus.”

James looked back down at his essay on Imps. “Doesn’t Levi Hallow talk to Smith?”

Sirius paused to think, but Peter spoke up first. “More like Smith talks at Hallow.” They all snickered.

“That’s it,” Sirius said, looking considerably less grumpy. “Remus just feels bad for him!”

James’s expression fell flat. His headache was getting worse. “Would you—”

“I feel bad for who?” All three of them turned to the entrance of the common room. James and Peter exchanged a regretful look. Remus waved at them. “What are you guys talking about?”

“Nothing—” “Doesn’t matter—”

“ _Erwin Smith,_ ” Sirius spit. “You talk about him all the time. Why shouldn’t we?”

Remus’s eyes narrowed and James knew it was time to leave. Slowly, he began to gather up his things…

“No way, James,” Sirius said. “You’re on my side about this. We can’t be friends with Slytherins!”

“That’s stupid,” Remus fired back. “What are you, five?”

The rest of the evening, James tried to focus on homework with Peter while Remus and Sirius fought in the middle of the common room. The prefects stopped trying to shut them up after a while, considering they, along with everyone else, were tired enough to tune out just about anything. James managed to finish his two feet of writing, but he knew he wasn’t about to get an Outstanding.

Even as they were climbing up the stairs to get sleep, Remus and Sirius were still going at it. James didn’t care. He didn’t care about Slytherins period. He _especially_ didn’t care about Severus Snape who had a pathetic crush on Lily Evans. James _might_ have a crush on her, too, but he was certain it wasn’t pathetic.

All he cared about was Quiddich, and that he had been the best flyer in class. Well, Erwin Smith and Levi Hallow had been okay, but they didn’t have James’s passion for the game. There was Sirius, too, but he most likely wouldn’t have the grades to play at all.

James couldn’t wait until next year’s tryouts. He couldn’t wait to show off to Lily Evans. He couldn’t wait to win the House cup for the Gryffindors. What was there to complain about? Only his stupid headache…

 

• * º * •

 

“Are you all ready for you final Flying tests?” Professor Imogen called across the Quiddich pitch. She looked almost as enthusiastic as James Potter would have been, had he been able to attend class. Lily felt bad for him, getting sick on the last flying class of the year. She didn’t feel so bad for Peter, who had feigned sickness to comfort Peter in his melodramatic distress at missing an opportunity to fly with an audience—in the stadium, no less. He would have to make up his test later, with only the instructor to watch.

Half an hour later, Lily was twice as concerned for James.

Erwin Smith was making the test look easy, even though the previous three students had barely passed. He lapped the stadium with perfect balance and impressive speed. As the circuit required, Erwin dipped and rose to the right heights with the grace of a natural. There were no rough turns or jerking around like James was prone to doing. Lily was not the only one staring in awe.

“I think we should just lie to him,” Remus said, not taking his eyes off the performance of a test.

Lily nodded absently. “We can just say that the Slytherins did okay and James should practice more just in case.”

“What?” Sirius didn’t take his eyes off the flying either. “No…we have to tell him the truth. We can’t let the Slytherins beat us.”

For a split second, Lily was sure he was going to crash as Erwin swooped down so close to the ground. But Erwin was as high as the goal posts the next moment, leaving a plume of sand in his wake.

“I’m not going to have James start bad mouthing Erwin, too, _Sirius,_ ” Remus said as he clapped with everyone else. “I think we shouldn’t say anything. If Slytherin beats Gryffindor next year, so be it. There’s five more years after that.”

_James has been pretty cocky,_ Lily thought. “Yeah, okay. No point in stressing him out during exam time.” Besides, she knew James would train hard for tryouts no matter what.

Sirius looked like he was still deliberating as Erwin finished his test and hopped off his broom while it was still slowing down. Like the students before him, he shook the Professor’s hand. Most of the students clapped with genuine enthusiasm—even Sirius clapped, with some reluctance. But instead of soaking in the praise like James surely would have, Erwin made his way to the one person _not_ clapping for him.

Levi Hallow snatched the broom from Erwin and stalked over to the Professor without a word. Erwin had a smug expression on his face, but Lily got the impression that it wasn’t self-satisfaction.

She understood soon enough. The second Levi touched off the ground, he was a bullet. Unconcerned with grace, Levi whipped through the same motions as Erwin, but at nearly double the speed.

“Holy crap,” Lily heard murmured in the crowd. “Think he enchanted the broom or something?”

But they weren’t allowed to have their wands on them during the test. Levi wasn’t much more than a black blur flying around the stadium, but nothing could have been aiding him. Everyone held their breath as Levi darted toward the ground, but he ascended just as quickly as Erwin and left an exponentially larger sand plume drifting behind him.

Lily dragged her eyes away to glance at Erwin. His face wasn’t frozen in shock like everyone else’s, but frozen in something closer to…exhilaration.

By the time Lily glanced back to the field, Levi had finished his exam. His dark hair was windblown, but his eyes were brighter as they landed straight on who Lily expected.

“What are we gonna say to James?” Remus asked. No one answered him.

After class, Lily decided to just ask the question they were all wondering. She approached Levi and Erwin with as much confidence as she could muster and opened her mouth—

“Not trying out next year,” Levi said.

Lily blinked. “Oh. You’re not?” She could hear Remus and Sirius approaching from behind.

“I’m not.” Levi started walking away.

Erwin smiled at Lily and the others. “Nice job Lily, Sirius. And you were great, Remus! See ya later.”

Lily watched them go, then noticed Sirius’s face scrunching into a grimace. She rolled her eyes. Lily waited until Remus looked distracted to tug on Sirius’s arm. She muttered in his ear, “It was just a compliment. Trust me when I say you’re not in danger of losing your best friend to Erwin Smith, okay?”

Sirius made a noncommittal sound. “He’s still weird.”

 

• * º * •

 

The Leaving Feast was always the the loudest. Albus usually enjoyed the noise; it helped crowd out thoughts of the seventh years leaving, maybe never to be seen by Albus again. This year, however, there was no quieting his mind. And his sadness was superseded by his intrigue for the first years.

At the Gryffindor table, Levi Hallow sat in the same seat he took just after being sorted. He looked just as disinterested as then. Unlike Harry Potter, he was difficult to read, and Albus felt compelled to take that as a challenge—which wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

_Nothing good can come from digging_. _Remember your vow._

But Albus had told himself this a thousand times over the past several months and he knew his discipline was wearing thin. He had hoped he could scratch whatever itch he had with the name _Hallow_ and move on, but…

_It could very well be nothing_.

But those words had no more power than any of the others he told himself, and certainly not more power than Albus’s interest in helping his students.

_Does Hallow even need help? Or guidance? Or are you doing this for yourself?_

Looking at Levi from where he sat at the faculty table, Albus felt a pang of guilt. He wasn’t used to being so aware of a student so disconnected from the school. Even Draco Malfoy, who had a terrible attitude about school, at least was involved with Quiddich leading his posse around the halls and antagonizing Harry Potter. But Levi Hallow, despite the glowing praise the Flying instructor had given Albus the supper after exam day, seemed to have no intention of joining the team. Or joining anything else.

Since he had been nosing around anyway, Albus had taken a closer look at Levi’s classwork as well. Nothing Levi did showed a particular interest in one class over the others. For once, Albus was at a loss. Could he truly not reach a fellow Gryffindor?

_Perhaps I should just leave him alone._

That method had certainly done no good in Harry Potter’s fifth year, but not all students were the same.

_I’m assuming something is going to happen with him._

And absolutely nothing might happen, of course. But if Albus knew one thing about himself, it was that his intuition was rarely wrong.

_Hallow_.

Dessert was served. Albus stood and gave the students permission to visit friends at other tables. By the time Albus sat back down, Levi Hallow had company: an average-looking boy that Albus had come to recognize now as Erwin Smith.

Albus didn’t quite know what to make of him, either. To the faculty, he was the all-around promising student: excellent marks, excellent attitude (most of the time), and an impressive maturity for his age. But most of the faculty also agreed when the students described him as a House Stray.

There were always a few House Strays during any given school year: two or three students who didn’t like where they were sorted and spent their energy avoiding their own House. And Erwin Smith didn’t have any Slytherins friends…

McGonagall was the only Professor who disagreed with the Stray theory when Albus brought it up with her. “He didn’t avoid wearing his Slytherin uniform and has gone to every Quiddich match in support of Slytherin,” she pointed out. Albus asked why she noticed these things, but she just stuck up her nose and said she cares about her students.

“All that’s besides the point, anyway,” she said. “I happen to think the boy’s sorting was perfectly appropriate.”

Albus raised an eyebrow.

She tried to suppress a smirk. “During every written exam he had in my class, he would write down an answer, then transfigure it into the wrong answer as he continued, then transfigure them all back again before he handed the test in. It’s simple magic, but a first year doing it without a wand is unusual.”

“Why would he do that?” Albus asked.

“Because the students knew he got excellent grades and they began cheating off of him. Usually I intervene, but I wanted to see what he would do about it. He didn’t come complaining to me like a Ravenclaw would, he didn’t confront the students like a Gryffindor, and he didn’t just let them have the answers like Hufflepuffs tend to do.”

Albus nodded. “I see. He took the matter into his own hands.”

Yet even now, it was difficult to see in Erwin Smith fitting in with the other Slytherins. And if it was difficult for the Headmaster to see, it must be impossible for poor Erwin himself. _Hence the beeline to the Gryffindor table_ , Albus mused.

He breathed an internal sigh of relief as Levi started making conversation, even if it was only a few words here and there. _Perhaps I can leave him alone and learn more about him at the same time._ An investigation into Levi’s name wouldn’t be simple. He wasn’t close enough to Levi to justify a visit to Pricilla Nelliwether without destroying whatever trust Levi might have in him, and if Pricilla was anything like the rest of her family, forthcoming was not likely to be among her traits. Plus, an investigation into Levi’s name might be as pointless as his investigation into Grindelwald’s death. Just one of the many ripples when changing the course of history. Albus knew he would be wasting his second life if he were to obsessively examine them all.

Erwin laughed. Levi smiled.

_Perhaps the route to reach him is sitting right across from him._

Albus Dumbledore was too curious for his own good.


	4. Names Revealed

_1946_

_This can’t be right,_ Albus thought for the hundredth time. Moving pictures filled the cover of the _Daily Prophet_ : Dementors lurking around Nurmengard prison; a somber prison warden being interviewed; the Minister of Magic, Leonard Spencer-Moon, being photographed holding the “Death Certificate of the Century.”

“Certificate of the…? Ridiculous,” Albus muttered. _Yet who am I to say it’s wrong?_

The headline read:

_GRINDELWALD GETS DEMENTOR’S KISS_

_After murdering a prison guard, the Dark Wizard meets death_

Some part of Albus’s mind wondered if Grindelwald would have met death eagerly. _Most likely_ , he thought. That wasn’t important, but what about this change in the timeline? Grindelwald’s end by Voldemort’s hand was next to impossible now. Was this early death—hardly a year after Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald for a second time—the way it was always meant to be?

Albus wasn’t sure what to feel, so he decided to feel nothing instead. He relaxed his tight expression and read the main article.

_Late last night, Ministry-appointed Warden of Nurmengard Prison, Boris Helms, met with the Minister of Magic to declare Gellert Grindelwald killed by the Kiss. He reported the prison’s only other human guard brutally murdered in a freak rampage of lone prisoner Grindelwald, forcing the Warden to protect himself with extreme measures. Since the deceased guard, Jackson Keiblin, was a trusted friend of the Warden’s, The Minister graciously agreed to Helms’s offer to incinerate the remains himself. The identity of the body was confirmed, and the minister received the Death Certificate of the Century this morning._

The article continued with Grindelwald’s life story of darkness and treason. Albus turned to the next page, but there were only more headlines of spinoff articles and photos of Grindelwald at various ages—even Dumbledore himself made more than one appearance.

Albus closed the paper and set it face down on his desk. This was the first change in the timeline Dumbledore had not directly influenced. _How?_ Albus asked himself. _Even if it means nothing, how?_ A rampage was Gellert’s style, unless the dementors turned him as mad as they did to Bellatrix Lestrange.

Albus tried to go about the rest of the day normally, but at dusk he reached his point. He needed to know how.

 

• * º * •

 

_1972_

Finding a quiet compartment was proving to be difficult for Levi. Finally he found one near the back with only one student inside. But it was Erwin Smith.

 _Keep to yourself. Your kind, Levi._ His father had come home for all of two days over the Summer, and on both days he reiterated his golden rule. That, and: _Friends are distractions. They pull you down to a lower level of maturity. You’re better than that._

 _Isn’t half-blood enough?_ Levi thought. _Is one friend too much?_

It didn’t matter what Levi thought; his father never wavered from his opinions. But then Erwin waved at him. Levi sighed an slid open the compartment door.

“Hey, Levi! How was summer?”

Levi sat down across from Erwin. “Boring.”

“Mine too. My mom was in China all summer, and my dad has long hours at the Ministry. I did stuff with him on the weekends, though. All I did was read.” Erwin held up the _Standard Book of Spells Grade 6_ he had in his lap. “I know I’ll just have to read them all again since I can’t actually do the spells. It’s interesting anyway. But the _Advanced Potion Making_ textbook…it has a lot of inconsistencies i should probably mention to Professor Slughorn.”

Levi eyes were at risk of never rolling to the front of his head again. “So you don’t play Quiddich all summer like everyone else?”

“I do.”

Levi paused. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” Erwin said, putting his book away. “My dad loves Quiddich and plays with me sometimes. He’s a pretty good keeper.”

“You like your dad, then?” It slipped out before Levi could censor himself.

Erwin cocked his head. “Yeah. He’s really smart. He didn’t go to Hogwarts, but he definitely would have been a Ravenclaw if he had. He loves learning for the sake of it—especially anything to do with magical creatures, which is why got promoted to head of Control of Magical Creatures so fast. He probably knows more than everybody else.”

“He didn’t go to Hogwarts?”

“My mom didn’t either. They’re both from America. We moved here just a few years after I was born for my dad’s job.”

Levi nodded and stared out the window. _I don’t even know what my father does._ The train ride had hardly begun, but the sky was already growing dark with rainclouds. He hoped for the first years’ sake that it wouldn't rain at Hogwarts when it was time to board the boats.  

“What did you do over the summer?” Erwin asked.

“I spend the whole time with my grandmother. She’s not very smart, but she’s nice.” Levi said no more on the subject.

When they arrived, it was thundering, and the first years were herded toward the carriages with promises that they would be able to take the boats another day. Levi squinted his eyes to make sure he was seeing right: there were black horses, hardly more than skin and bones, pulling the carriages. Glancing around, everyone else seemed to be oblivious to them— _too_ oblivious.

The whole ride he tried to remember from his studies what kind of horses they were, but nothing came to mind. He was certain Erwin hadn’t seen them either until he asked Levi, “What did you see? It seemed like you saw something.”

Levi narrowed his eyes. “You probably won’t believe me.”

“Yeah I will,” Erwin countered with inexplicable confidence.

How could Erwin believe Levi if he couldn’t see the horses himself? Levi didn’t understand Erwin at all.

 

• * º * •

 

Sirius once told Lily that he predicted his brother’s sorting years ago, when Sirius drank from his parents liquor cabinet and Regulus blackmailed him into sneaking him to a professional Quidditch match. Lily had her doubts about Sirius’s stories, but when Regulus Black made the march from sorting stool to the Slytherin table, Lily admitted that Sirius had been right all along.

“Everyone in your family is Slytherin except for you.” James laughed. “Weirdo.”

Sirius made a face at him, then craned his neck to look back at his brother. Lily could tell that Sirius wasn’t sure whether to feel pride for Regulus or contempt.

“James, are you going to practice for tryouts today?” Peter asked.

Lily sighed. Tryouts had been the main topic of conversation for the past week even though James was the only one of them trying out. Peter liked talking about it because it meant James talking to him endlessly, and Remus didn’t mind talking about it because he was supportive like that. Sirius was less keen since he couldn’t tryout because of his academic standing. Lily _wanted_ to want to talk about it, but all of James’s showing off in Flying class last year had soured her interest in talking about flying at all.

Severus put a damper on it all, too, because he had hated every second of being with James, and that didn’t make him a very pleasant classmate. _Then again,_ Lily thought, _Severus hates everything James does._ It was tiring, all of it.

But for all of Sirius’s smack about his brother, he hadn’t left out how Regulus was a great flyer. She smiled at the thought of James having an opponent she could root for—and Sirius rooting with her.

“Idiot, don’t sit near Snape...” Sirius muttered.

Lily hit him on the arm. “Maybe they’ll be friends. That would be good. You always said Regulus had trouble making them.”

“Psh,” James waved his hand. “If that happens, I’ll eat my scarf.”

Lily didn’t argue with him. She wasn’t exactly counting on Severus opening his heart to a friendship with Regulus Black, either. Still, she wished Severus would open his heart to be friends with _somebody_. She felt bad not seeing him around as often.

“Wait, never mind,” Sirius said. “Someone just invited him—oh.”

Lily peered over to where Sirius was looking. She rolled her eyes. “Don’t tell me you still don’t like Erwin Smith. He’s perfectly nice!”

Remus nodded, but Sirius tried to shrug like he didn’t care. “I guess it’s better than sitting alone on the first day…”

“He’s a weirdo like you, Sirius,” James said.

“No, he’s not,” Remus mumbled.

Sirius glared at James. “Yeah, and if Regulus is as good a flyer as he is, then you better practice harder.”

James leaned forward—no doubt about to tell Sirius just why he was better than any first year Gryffindor at flying—when Headmaster Dumbledore stood to announce the feast.

The boys dug in immediately, forgetting their conversation, but Lily took a moment to look around the Great Hall. At all her classmates, the first years, the older students, the professors, the candles, and the enchanted ceiling—a cloudless night. She soaked it all in.

Then she saw a tall boy with dirty blonde hair she didn’t recognize.

“Hey, who’s that? Sitting with the Hufflepuff second years?” she asked. “Is he a new student?”

“Yup,” Peter answered, hardly pausing before taking another drink of pumpkin juice. “Mike Zacharius. Transferred from Durmstrang because of all the disappearances there.”

Lily smiled. “He’s cute!”

James finally looked up from his food. “What?”

 

• * º * •

 

On three different occasions, Levi refused to go with Erwin to Quidditch tryouts. Erwin kept asking why he didn’t want to join the team, and Levi either gave him a vague non-answer or a flat out “Don’t want to.”

But then Levi saw Erwin heading over to the pitch with Remus and Regulus and had second thoughts.

“Levi!” Erwin came over to where Levi had shown up at one of the stands. “I thought you didn’t—”

“I’m just here to watch, stupid,” Levi said.

For a moment, Erwin looked like he wanted to ask _but why_ again, but instead he smirked. “Well, winning against Gryffindor will be just that much easier then.”

Levi’s mouth opened in surprise. Then he narrowed his eyes. “I bet I could help Gryffindor win the cup even without being on the team.”

Erwin smiled widely. “Okay! We’ll see.” He waved and jogged back to the Slytherin captain, who was holding his House’s tryouts first. Erwin talked with Remus for a bit, then disappeared into the crowd with Regulus. Levi decided he didn’t want to sit in after all and started to leave.

“Hey, wait.”

Levi turned to Remus, expecting another annoying comment on tryouts.

“Do you have the Herbology homework from Wednesday?”

“Huh?” Levi stared at him. Remus repeated his question as if it wasn’t weird.

Then Levi realized that maybe he wasn’t an outsider after all.

 

• * º * •

 

Albus had always been a multi-tasker within his mind and even more so with his work: there were six books on his desk, two messages ready for mailing, and anther set of Hogsmeade permission forms to scan for forgery. Luckily, his office hours were almost through. He closed his eyes for a moment to rest. He might be in his younger body again, but his head felt as old as ever.

He opened the Headmaster’s office door without lifting a finger. “Come in.”

Professor McGonagall swept in like she owned the place. Albus smiled at the thought that she once had. “Minerva, how are you?”

She tsked. “Oh, just fine. I’m only worried for the safety of the _entire school_ as well as my own _sanity_.”

“I can assure you your sanity is one of the securest I’ve known.”

“And safety?” The Professor sat down across from him. “The disappearances. They’re not being taken seriously by the authorities. What if students are at risk?”

“Closing the school would be premature, Minerva. The disappearances have all been adults.”

“So I should be concerned for my own safety, then?” She waved a hand in hopelessness.

“Is this what you wanted to meet with me for?”

Minerva pursed her lips. “No. I found something in Hallow’s luggage.” She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, and didn’t continue.

Albus leaned forward. “I know you are quite wary of what I have been asking you Minerva, but this is important. What was it?”

“A letter, almost certainly from a parent. It only outlined the most vague of events: having a good time, good weather, father is well, etcetera.”

“Couldn’t get a location?”

She shook her head. “I checked the letter and envelope with various spells, but they were cleaner than my office at start of term.” She heaved a sigh. “But I didn’t come to you about what it said.”

“No?” Albus’s hands were beginning to sweat. He needed something—some lead, some idea—because he was beginning to worry about the Durmstrang disappearances as much as any other worried parent and almost as much as Minerva.

“I recognized the handwriting. Not immediately, mind you, but after a lot of digging in old files I’ve kept over the years.”

Albus leaned forward. “Whose was it?”

The Professor bristled at his impatient tone. “I found Carlotta Pinkstone’s resignation letter from two summers ago. You remember her, I presume?”

Albus was silent. He leaned back in his chair, both feeling lighter and more confused than he had in months. “Carlotta Pinkstone,” he muttered.

“If we’re getting this right, and she is his mother,” Minerva said, “Then I’m a little offended she never said a word about her son going to Hogwarts. When she resigned to take care of her baby, she’d been certain it would be a _girl_ and she was going to send her to _Beauxbatons_. I never questioned her, and I never saw her again.”

“What about her husband?” Albus asked.

“Didn’t take his name,” Minerva replied. “But I do know she divorced him just after getting pregnant, whoever he was. Perhaps she got remarried.”

Minerva kept talking, but Albus’s thoughts were elsewhere: _Pinkstone. Levi’s mother is Carlotta Pinkstone. And if she never took her husband’s name, Levi’s grandmother’s last name must be Pinkstone, too. Nelliwether must be her maiden name. Why is Pricilla Nelliwether going about using her maiden name?_

“She couldn’t have known the gender.” Albus steepled his hands under his chin. “Not then, and not with her distaste for muggle things.”

“I don’t know much about muggle technology but—”

“I’m terribly, terribly sorry, Minerva,” Albus said, “but I must see my final appointments before the hour gets too late.”

Minerva left without too much grumbling, and Dumbledore sat in his office for the next hour doing nothing. He had no other appointment except one with his thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> writing is hard


End file.
